F1
Helmut Marko Mocks McLaren’s ‘Sportsmanship’ After Costly Strategy at Italian Grand Prix
Helmut Marko takes a dig at McLaren with a "sportsmanship" comment at the Italian Grand Prix, saying, "I appreciate that, and it slightly improves our position."
Helmut Marko humorously expressed his gratitude to McLaren for their "sportsmanship" following their loss of the Italian Grand Prix F1 race win.
McLaren is currently trailing Red Bull by only eight points in the Formula 1 constructors' championship.
The team from Woking might have topped the leaderboard after the Monza race if they had achieved a first and second place finish.
Nevertheless, opting for a two-stop strategy for Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris proved to be an expensive mistake.
This enabled Charles Leclerc to seize the race lead, which he maintained while employing a one-stop strategy.
Norris securing third place resulted in him trimming just eight points off of Max Verstappen's advantage in the drivers' championship, leaving Verstappen 62 points ahead as they approach the Azerbaijan race.
In an interview with the Dutch newspaper de Telegraaf, Marko rejected the idea that it was a "disappointing result" and then ridiculed McLaren.
"A letdown? Absolutely not," he stated. "We had anticipated this to some extent, and I want to offer my congratulations to Ferrari for their win and express my gratitude to McLaren for their fair play."
"Thank you, that helps improve our circumstances somewhat."
Red Bull had a tough weekend, with Verstappen managing to secure only a sixth-place finish.
Finishing sixth marks his poorest result on the track since the Sao Paulo Grand Prix in 2022.
Due to Red Bull's significant challenges, their standings in both championships are at risk, especially with the upcoming races in Baku and Singapore, which are anticipated to be unfavorable for them.
A positive development for Red Bull is the one-month break before the American races. This interval provides them with valuable time to possibly discover strategies that could enable Verstappen to secure his fourth world championship this year.
Marko is certain that Verstappen will keep being a key factor in 2024.
He noted that Max remains the top driver both mentally and in terms of quality.
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